Is this too much gun for white tails

[GooseGestapo]

I’ve killed deer with my .300RUM!

It did a remarkable job without anymore excessive damage than my ..270 or .30/06. With a suitable bullet, it’s not overly excessive but gives a long range option.

I killed the longest range kill with mine. Also set up for an anticipated long range shot only to have a doe come out at 40yds! I deliberately placed shot for maximum destruction! Deer died quickly! But overall, the Remington 180gr Corlokt held together and exited after traversing 30+” of deer while breaking some of the densest bones! Not nearly as destructive as a .338” Nosler 210gr Partition at 500fps slower!

I just decided I didn’t like the rifle that contained it (Savage M110). It draws blood on both ends! Every time I’ve shot game, it’s given me a “Weatherby Eye”...
I reload for mine. Use surplus military powders and blem or bulk bullets and it’s cheaper to shoot than a .30/30...

The .300Rum doesn’t readily lend itself to reduced loads but it can be done.
But that’s like like running cheap low octane gas in a Ferrari!

 

[Electricmo]

Is a 45-70 to much gun?

 

[BreechFace]

Is a 12g slug too much gun?

 

[Bazoo]

For me, I shoot guns I like. I don’t choose a gun for the cartridge as much as I choose a cartridge for the gun. If I love the gun, I make the cartridge work for my application. Maybe you ain’t like this too, but that plays a part for me.

 

[CraigC]

It's a little much. But it will kill them. You're free to do what you like.
I'm also a fan of head or neck shots if you know how to shoot well enough and understand the anatomy.

It's not a matter of skill. The margin for error is very small on the one part of the animal that moves the most.

 

[Catpop]

Plus if there is any wasted meat, then the shot was bad and the meat would have been wasted with any other gun. The only wasted meat is rib meat. I don't know anyone who eats deer ribs. Somebody might, but nobody i know.

I used to eat barbecued deer ribs but haven’t in a long time.

 

[bearcreek]

It's not a matter of skill. The margin for error is very small on the one part of the animal that moves the most.

Yup, the chances of missing, just slightly, and blowing a jaw or nose off and causing an extended, painful death by starvation are quite high. I've killed two deer with head shots, both were within 10 feet. One was less than 3 feet from the muzzle. I would go no further than that.

 

[BreechFace]

Neck shots are totally different than head shots. I would almost never take a head shot.

if you all knew how many hunters put shots into necks out west here you might change your mind on neck shots. The neck is a very good area to put down deer and elk. Study the anatomy where one is hitting the neck; there is very little movement going on.

 

[hdbiker]

it's not too much gun if ya like bloodshot meat

 

[bearcreek]

Neck shots are totally different than head shots. I would almost never take a head shot.

if you all knew how many hunters put shots into necks out west here you might change your mind on neck shots. The neck is a very good area to put down deer and elk. Study the anatomy where one is hitting the neck; there is very little movement going on.

A neck shot will put it down. It will also ruin a bunch of meat.

 

[.308 Norma]

it's not too much gun if ya like bloodshot meat

If "ya" don't like bloodshot meat, don't shoot them in the rear end.

 

[entropy]

Two reasons I don't do neck shots:
1. While it is a more humane kill if executed correctly, it is a lower kill probability due to the extremely small margin for error than shooting for the aorta. 2 inches higher or lower on the shoulder means a long track, as does 3 inches front or back, for a spinal shot. You have 5 inches in every direction with an aorta shot, and still hit either the heart, or one or both lungs.
2. Not a problem everywhere, but CWD is not unheard of in this area, and shooting the spinal cord opens that can of worms up.
In an area without CWD, and having the skill to do so, I might try it also. But except for the doe I hit in the butt when I was 15, (which my Dad had shot in the butt just before, with his .357) I have shot at the aorta of every deer. The only miss was the doe I held a little high on at 125 yards with my Hawken, hit her just above the aorta through both lungs. So that aimpoint has served me well.

 

[Chuck R.]

I'm another "non-neck-shooter"..... but what's often missing from these discussions is the "conditions" that the shot is taken.

Just like my onetime head shot: 30 yards, bedded buck, no other shot, all the time in the world, while resting against a tree with a .270 with the scope on 9x. The conditions are critical as to what type of shot I'll take. For me, under those "conditions" the shot made sense, but I wouldn't take it if the conditions were different.

Probably 65% of the shots I take are:

From stands/blinds
Supported, solid rest
Non-aware animal, feeding etc.
Time isn't critical
Distance is under 150yds
Plenty of recovery area (DRT shot isn't required, so I can let them run a bit)
Rapid expanding bullet is adequate

Based on above the vast majority of time I'll double lung them. They'll jump, run and pile up. I know the area, even without a blood trail I'll find them.

The other 35% of the shots are "meeting engagements", either I'm moving, the game is, or both.

Field positions or unsupported
Animal could be aware & moving. Presentation is seldom perfect.
Time is critical
Distance varies from 20yds to 500+
Might need DRT
Like a bullet that penetrates, and on average I'm not using a caliber that's considered "adequate". The rifle is tailored to the terrain.

Most of the time these are quartering and I'm breaking a shoulder.

So IMHO, one man's "unreasonable" "X" shot may be perfect based on the conditions under which it was made.